Automatic meter-reading apparatus



May 12, 1942.

.w, LEATHERS AUTOMATIC METER-READING APPA RATUS Filed Oct. 18, 1940 IN VENTOR. ML

Patented May 12,1942

2,283,070 AUTOMATIC METER-READING APPARATUS Ward Leathers, Brooklyn, N. Y., assignor, by

mesne assignments, to International Machines Corporation Application October 18,1940, Serial No. 361,799 6 Claims. (cl. 177-351) My invention pertains to the type of meterreading and recording wherein many widely distributed consumer meters are read'from a central reading station by means of a wire. In the present invention a recording cyclometer in the meter of a type more fully set forth in my copending application for Letters Patent, Serial No. 349,974, is read from central station by an impulse method as distinguished from that class of meter reading devices which measure the resistances of a plurality of resistances of varying Figure l is a diagrammatic view of a telelector.

reading system incorporating the principles of the present invention.

Figure 2 is a perspective diagram of the armature of a watt-hour meter and associated cyclometer-driving means.

Referring now to the drawing in detail, a cyclometer counter generally characterized by the I numeral l having four numeral cylinders for recording up to four digits and operating in a manner common to meters and counters, contains means whereby each cylinder, in its rotation, causes contact to be made successively with each of ten electric bus-bars representing the numerals 01-234-5-6 7-8-9. The said means'also comprises four brushes H for maintaining circuits through the said seiectins means.

The cyclometer is operated by an electromagnet I00 shown in Fig.2. A cyclometer wheel I 0| has a ratchet Ill attached thereto, both be- ,ing free on the shaft. when the electro-masnet I" is energized, the ratchet II! is advanced by means of a pawl III which is pulled by an armsture I. An armature III in a watt-hour meter, or any rotating-or pulsating part in any kind of meter such as water meter, gas meter, etc., is actuated at a rate proportional-to the amount of the commodity being used by the consumer. A

iii

Business rotates a gear Ill and reduces the speed of rotation. The gear ill'l rotates a shaft to which a projection I" is fastened. -With every full revolution of the shaft, the projection causes a pair of contacts it! to close. When the contacts I09 are closed a circuit is completed containing a battery 0 or other source of electrical energy and the electro-magnet "Ill. The electro-magnet is thus energized and is able to advance the cyclometer when a unit of electrical energy is consumedand measured by a watt-hour meter.

A stepping or phasing unit generally characterized by the numeral II is driven by an electromagnetic coil IS which by means of an armature it rotates a distributor arm I! one-tenth revolution per actuation and a distributing arm l8 oneseventh revolution per ten actuations of the arm I 1.. The latter ratio is obtained by means of a crank 20 joined to the distributor arm I! which actuates a bell-crank II for holding a ratchet 22 against a ratchet wheel 23 during one out of ten of the actuations of the armature l6. Ten electrical distributing positions on the distributor 25 are electrically joined to the ten aforementioned bus-bars. Four of the electrical contact positions on the distributor it are electrically joined to the brushes Ii. The other three electrical contact positions are joined electrically to any selected three conductors of the ten joined between the distributor II and the bus-bars. These three selective iunctures are for the purpose of selecting, reading and recording a number indicative of the particular meter. As shown in Fig. 1, the various contacts of the distributor 30 are so connected electrically to the various bus bars that the arbitrary selected meter-identifying number is .one hundred and thirty-four.

tion. Between-the two dotted lines is diagrammatically represented a local or field selector 31, the purpose of which is to select immediately upon the reading of a meter the next meter to be read.

In the reading board, discs, preferably of laminated Bakelite, 40,. II and 42 are rotated in a clockwise direction at a constant speed by a motor l3. Geared to them is a distributor arm 45 which is rotated at the same speed in the same direction. As the discs 4|. 4| and 41 turn, knobs on their peripheries actuate respectively the electric contacts l1, l8 and" each closing an worm-gear m on the shaft of the armature m as associated circuit during the som f ea h knob and breaking it therebetween The distributor arm, 45 distributes current to a series of contacts 54 to each of which it makes contact at exactly the same moment a knob on the disc 40 closes the contact at 41. The contacts 50 are in seven groups of ten each, each group representing numerals to 9 and corresponding contacts of the group being electrically joined respectively to a corresponding common connection SI of which there are ten. These ten common connectors are in turn electrically joined by conductors 52 to any suitable means of recording at 53. The disc 40 has seven groups of knobs of ten each. There is a space between each knob of dimension the equivalent of the removal of one knob.

These seventy contacts are for the purpose of sending seventy impulses to the stepping or phasing unit I; in the meter for providing one full meter-reading cycle, 1. e., for the reading of one meter. The disc 4| has but one knob which is for the purpose of sending impulses to the selector 31 when the reading of a meter is concluded in order that the next cycle of impulses may be sent to the next 'meter to be read. The disc 43 has a desirable number of knobs, such as three grouped together. These knobs are, for the purpose of sending impulses to the recording device for the recording of a suitable number of spaces between the meter-recordings where they are recorded on a tape or for the obtaining of any other elec-' trical actuations desirable for setting up in the recorder such mechanism as needed for the separating of the recording of one meter from another. It will be noted in the diagram that the knobs on the discs 4| and 42 lie within a segment of the disc 40 having a continuous knobless face so that during the performance of functions associated with the discs 4| and 42 there are no impulses sent through the contacts 41 to any meter.

Thus it is evident that thereare seventy impulses required for reading one meter and that the armature I6 is actuated seventy times for a meter-reading cycle.

A constant source of current, such as from a battery 80 is supplied through the long line 6| to the coil IS in the meter where, after having passed through an inner winding 62 and an outer winding 63, it goes to ground-at G4 and from thence returns to ground at 65. Then it passes through a resistance of fixed value 66, the contacts 41, and back to the other pole of the battery. This occurs every time a knob on the disc 40 closes the contacts 41. A conductor is joined between the contact arm I1 and a tap on coil l at a point midway of. the inner and outer windings. The distributor arm I8 is joined to ground at 88.

When-a circuit is closed between distributor arms I! and I8 throughthe cyclometer ll, voltage from the battery 60 finds passage to ground at 8!, because in the former instance it is obliged to traverse only one of the coil windings instead of both thereof, with less resistance than at 54. Tapped to this reading circuit at a point between the resistance N and the resistance 2, or 62 plus 43 as the case may be, is a line 10 joined to the grid of an electronic tube ll. When the circuit is grounded at 84, there is a definite voltage drop across resistor 66 which is imposed on the grid of the tube 11 in such manner as to tend to make the grid positive with respect to the cathode. A resistor 15 in the cathode circuit of the tube is of such value that it gives the grid enough negative bias to make the plate current insufficient to actuate a relay 11 the coil of which is in the plate circuit of the tube. When the circuit is grounded at 69, however, the voltage drop across resistor 66 becomes greater. The grid of tube H becomes more positivecausing the relay 13 to actuate be cause of the increased plate current. A battery ,12 furnishes plate energy for tube 1 I.

From the negative side of the battery ill current is su lied by way of the armature-and-contact TI to the distributor arm 45, from which it is conducted by means of one of the contacts 50, one of the common connections El, and one of the conductors 52 to the recorder 53, from which a line 18 returns to the positive side of the battery 60. A line 19 from the negative side of the battery to the recorder 53; and 80 from recorder to the contacts 49 and back to the battery form a circuit for performing the functions heretofore described. Current from the negative side of the battery through an electro-magnetic selector in the field selector 3! is connected by means of a second long line 80 to the contacts 48 from which it returns to the battery. This is also for purposes heretofore described.

In the recorder 53 ten circuits comprising the conductors 52 and the common 18 are used for setting up any type of mechanism common to electro-printing or perforating or other recording apparatus.

What is claimed'is:

1. In a telemetric system, a plurality of parallel reading circuits adapted to be individually and selectively closed to render indications of a plurality of respective magnitudes, a rotary selector switch including a plurality of terminal contacts for each circuit, said terminal contacts being arranged in a plurality of groups corresponding to the number of magnitudes, each group being inclusive of an entire set of the circuit contacts and thecontacts in each group being similarly arranged, a scanning arm for successively and separately scanning the contacts of' each group in succession and for traversing the groups successively, a source of energizing current for the circuits, a normally open relay-actuated switch common toall of said circuits for closing the selected circuit through the source and scanning arm, an impedance circuit including a resistance, means operable in phase with the scanning arm for energizing said impedance circuit to establish a predetermined potential diiferential across the resistance when the scanning arm is in engagement with a contact of each group whose circuit corresponds to the value of its respective magnitude, and means operable upon establishment of said potential ditferential across the resistance for actuating the relay-actuated switch.

2. In a telemetric system, a plurality of parallel reading circuits adapted to be individually and selectively closed to render indications of a plurality of respective magnitudes, a rotary selector switch including a plurality of terminal contacts for each circuit, said terminal contacts being arranged in a plurality of groups corresponding to the number of magnitudes, each group being inclusive of an entire set of the circuit contacts and the contacts in each group being similarly arranged, a scanning arm for. successively and separately scanning the contacts of each group in succession and for traversing the groups successively, a source of energizing current for the circuits, a normally open relay-actuated switch common to all of said circuits for closing the selected circuit through the source and scanning arm, an impedance circuit including a reaasaoro sistance, means operable in phase with the scanning arm for energizingthe impedance circuit to establish a predetermined potential diilerential across the resistance when the scanning arm is in engagement with a contact of each group whose circuit corresponds to the value of its respective magnitude, and electronic means operable upon establishment of said potential difl'erential across the resistor for actuating the relayactuated switch.

3. In a telemetric system, a plurality of par .allel reading circuits adapted to be individually and selectively closed to render indications of a plurality oi! respective magnitudes, a rotary selector switch including a plurality of terminal contacts for each circuit, said terminal contacts being arranged in a plurality of groups corresponding to the number of magnitudes, each group being inclusive of an entire set of the circult contacts and the contacts in each group being similarly arranged, a scanning arm ior successively and separately scanning the contacts or each group in succession and for traversing the groups successively, a. source of energizing.

current for the circuits, a normally open relayactuated switch for closing the selected circuit through the source and scanning arm, a relay for said switch, electronic means for actuating the relay, an impedance circuit, a source oi current therefor, a resistor disposed in said latter circuit, means operably connecting said electronic means and resistor whereby the iormer is responsive to a predetermined voltage drop across the latter to actuate the relay, means operable in phase with the scanning arm tor decreasing the impedance value of the impedance circuit to es tablish said predetermined voltage drop when the scanning arm is in engagement with a conbeing similarly arranged, a scanning arm for successively and separately scanning the contacts of each group in succession and for travresponsive to a predetermined voltage drop across the latter to actuate the relay, 9. resistance element in the impedance circuit, and meam operable in phase with the scanning arm for shunt ing said latter element from the impedance circuit to establish said predetermined voltage drop when the scanning arm is in engagement with a contact or each group whose circuit corresponds to the value of its respective magnitude.

5. In a telemetric system, a plurality of parallel reading circuits adapted to be individually and selectively closed to render indications ot a plurality of varying magnitudes the values of which are expressed by the ten niunerals of the Arabic system, a rotary selector switch including a plurality of terminal contacts corresponding in number to the number of magnitudes for each circuit, said contacts being arranged in groups of ten contacts each corresponding in number to the number of magnitudes, the contacts of each group being similarly arranged in the group,

normally open relay-actuated switch for closing the selected circuit through the source and scanning arm, and means operable in phase with the scanning arm for controlling the-closing or the relay-actuated switch when the scanning arm is in engagement with a contact oi each group whose circuit corresponds to the value of its respective magnitude.

6. In a telemetric system, a. plurality of normally open parallel branch circuits adapted to pedance circuit including a resistor common to ersing the groups successively, a source or energizing current tor the circuits, a normally open relay-actuated switch tor'olosing the selected cineuit through the source and scanning arm, a rei lay for said switch, electronic means for actuating the relay, an impedance circuit, a source or current therefor, a resistor disposed in said latter circuit, means operably connecting said electronic means and resistor whereby the former is said branch circuits, a selector switch operable upon application of current impulses to the impedance circuit to sequentially connect said branch circuits in the impedance circuit, a plurality or reading circuits including a source of energizing current, a rotary distributor switch including a plurality of terminal contacts for each -reading circuit and a rotary scanning arm for successive engagement with said terminal contacts. a. normally open relay-actuated switchfor closing a selected reading circuit through the source and scanning arm, means operable in phase with the seeming arm for periodically applying current impulses to the impedance circuit to actuate the selector switch and create a potential difl'erential across said resistor, said relay actuated switch being responsive only to creation of a relatively high potential diflerential across the resistor, a current limiting impedance device in the impedance circuit, and means operable upon closing said branch circuits for shunting said impedance device from the branch cir- Cults.

WARD LEATHERS. 

